Isaac Okoronkwo

Isaac Okoronkwo ( born May 1, 1978 in Nbene ) is a Nigerian football player. The central defender and World Cup qualifiers in 2002 played a large part of his professional career in Eastern European football; in English football, it was, however, been only a one-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Sports career

About the detour of FC Lagos it led the young Isaac Okoronkwo of Nigeria's giants Julius Berger. He subsequently worked at FC Enyimba and Iwuanyanwu Nationale and a brief return to the club with German roots, he gained his first experience abroad in Qatar, where he acted between 1997 and 1998 for half a year for the club Al- Rayyan based there sports club. The hoped-for continued employment did not materialize; Okoronkwo returned to his homeland to Iwuanyanwu National before it a year later a second attempt was launched abroad. New destination was Eastern Europe where he played for two years for the Moldovan Sheriff Tiraspol and from the summer of 2000, the defense of the Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk reinforced. In Donetsk, the center-back could increasingly present on the international stage and recommend his appearances in the UEFA Cup and the Champions League as well as the successes in the Ukrainian Cup (2001, 2002) and the Ukrainian Championship ( 2002) for the Nigerian national team.

As of the end of the 2002/ 03 Okoronkwos expired contract to clubs in the English Premier League and the German Bundesliga showed - these included, according to media reports, the FC Schalke 04 and Borussia Moenchengladbach and means of support of his friend and team-mate Jay -Jay Okocha, the Bolton Wanderers - interested in a commitment. Somewhat surprisingly, the World Cup qualifiers in 2002 then signed only a one-year contract with the Premier League newly promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers. In English football, new business but never find his bearings, remained for months away from the first-team - or even the substitutes' bench - and came only at the end of the season, as the descent has had almost stood firm to his only seven Erstligaeinsätzen. After the end of the season Okoronkwo received a new contract and so he joined Alania Vladikavkaz at the southwestern Russia. Financial problems made ​​there a short time later continued employment impossible and Okoronkwo moved in 2006 to the capital. When FK Moscow, he immediately became an important player - at the end of the first season, he was elected the trailer along with Hector Bracamonte at the best club players last season. After the end of the 2009 contract renewal of the Nigerian has been questioned because of the possible new Aliens Restriction in Russian football. Subsequently he moved to the beginning of 2010 to league rivals FC Rostov.

Nigerian national

Okoronkwo debuted in 2001 for the Nigerian national team, having played in the previous year for the Olympic team in Sydney. In the following years he was in 2002 and 2004 respectively in the squad the "Super Eagles " for the African Cup of Nations and also denied all the games of his team at the 2002 World Cup, but already ended in the group stage. His partner in the central defense was there a long time Joseph Yobo. After the coaching change from Shaibu Amodu to Berti Vogts in spring 2008 Okoronkwos National team career ended.

Achievements

  • Ukrainian Champion: 2002
  • Ukrainian Cup Winner: 2001, 2002
  • Moldavian Cup: 1999
Bridge Boys F.C. al-Rayyan SC FC Shakhtar Donetsk Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. Bolton Wanderers F.C.
417841
de